The use of mobile wireless communications technology has become increasingly important in modern society. Many individuals now use mobile phones, often referred to as “cellular phones” (but including phones that operate on digital networks such as PCS networks), as their primary in-home voice-communications devices. Today, it is common for individuals to use these phones in place of traditional land-line telephones. Mobile phones have also become an essential means of communication for businesses. There is a demand and desire to be able to use mobile phones inside office buildings and have them perform as well as when they are used outside.
A problem currently faced by wireless users inside buildings is that wireless signals often have poor penetration of external and internal walls. Users often experience little, intermittent, or even no reception inside large structures, resulting in the inability to originate outgoing or receive incoming calls. Additionally, users who enter large structures while in the middle of existing calls will often have their calls dropped as a result of diminishing signal strength. Today, additional services besides just voice communications are often desired to be provided by cellular wireless service providers; for example, short messaging or text messaging, wireless web connectivity, image transfer, and other services are being provided by wireless providers. The same issues that inhibit voice communications within large buildings also inhibit the use of these other services offered by wireless providers. A method for facilitating high-quality wireless communications inside buildings (or other dense structures) is needed.
Offices, homes, and other buildings often have existing cable-infrastructure components that, according to embodiments of the present invention, could be used to transport cellular signaling into these structures, effectively penetrating the walls of these structures. A way is needed to facilitate transmission of cellular communications signaling via these existing coaxial networks. A potential problem associated with using existing cable infrastructure is that existing cable bandwidth is reaching capacity. Delivery of traditional cable services, digital cable services, high-definition services, and data services such as high-speed Internet and voice-over-IP services, is currently consuming large quantities of the typical below-860 MHz cable frequencies. The current state of the art could be improved by providing a way to facilitate transmission of wireless communications signaling via existing coaxial networks which have little extra bandwidth in the below-860 MHz range.